Why Need Regular Dental Checkups

Why Are Dental Health Checkups So Important?

How often do you actually go for a dental checkup? It’s a busy world we live in with work and children demanding all of our time and sometimes we simply run out of hours in the day. Let’s take a look at why you shouldn’t forget to have a regular dental check up.

As cliché as it might sound, prevention is always better than cure, especially when it comes to dental health. Do not visit the dentist only when and if you have dental issues to solve.

You should also schedule a regular dental checkup to prevent disease and other issues from arising. There numerous benefits that come with regular dental check-ups, including:

  • Checking for and dealing with cavities, tartar, and plaque,
  • Screening for oral cancer
  • Receiving professional teeth whitening
  • Dealing with any other diseases
  • Ensuring bad habits do not affect your oral health

Dealing With The Basics During Check-Ups: Preventing Cavities, Plaque, and Tartar From Forming

Even when you follow the recommended daily oral healthcare such as brushing your teeth at least twice daily, flossing daily, and using mouth wash, there is still a risk of cavities, plaque, and tartar forming.

During regular dental check-ups, the dentist will help prevent any of these oral health issues from occurring by giving you professional dental clean that prevent plaque from forming.

Check-Up Ensure You Screen For Cancer Regularly

Just like any other type of cancer, oral cancer is a severe disease that can be life-threatening, especially when not diagnosed and treated early. It is, therefore, important for you to recognise the early signs and symptoms of oral cancer as early as possible.

Early symptoms recognition allows for early treatment, while the ailment is still in its early stages.

Dentists are trained to recognise the early signs of oral cancer. As such, a regular dental check-up will help you detect early signs and symptoms of oral cancer. Recognising the early sign of cancer makes it easy to treat the ailment successfully.

More importantly, screening for oral cancer is a painless process that takes only a few minutes.

You Get Professional Teeth Whitening Services During Check-Ups

Teeth whitening has become an essential part of oral health for many people. However, many people opt for over-the-counter solutions, which can pose considerable problems in terms of safety.

Dentists are best placed to help you whiten your teeth efficiently and safely. They can develop an intricate understanding of the state of your teeth and the best teeth whitening solution for your particular situation.

Regular Check-Ups Help You Deal With Other Oral Health Issues

While cavities, plaque, and tartar are the most common oral health issues we face, they are not the only oral issues you may encounter. Other issues you can face include gum disease, cracked teeth, and chipped teeth.

All of these issues present a significant risk to your oral health. For instance, cracks, and chips leave your teeth vulnerable to decay. Gum diseases can cause the bone that holds the teeth to decay.

It is crucial for a dentist to thoroughly inspect your mouth every six months to ensure you do not suffer from such issues. A dental check-up that entails an x-ray also helps the dentist understand what is happening underneath the surface.

It Ensures That Bad Habits Do Not Affect Your Oral Health

Sometimes we pick up habits that are detrimental to our oral health — for instance, biting nails, clenching your jaw, grinding your teeth, drinking tooth-decolouring drinks such as red wine and coffee, and smoking.

Without a regular dental check-up, you do not have a means of understanding which habits are bad for you and what these habits do to your oral health. Regular dental check-ups ensure you get educated on habits you should stop to stay healthy.

In Conclusion

Dental check-ups are not a waste of money or time. They are beneficial to your overall oral health. To stay healthy, make a point of scheduling a regular check-up two or more times every year.

It will help you deal with many of the common oral issues before they become problematic. If you need to visit a dentist for a dental check-up or any type of dental procedure, then look no further than Gardens Dental.

Gardens Dental offers a full array of dental services in Taylors Lakes and Caroline Springs to help you and your family maintain healthy teeth. 

To learn more about our services or make an appointment, please contact us today on (03) 9449 2626 or through our website

best dental fillings

Dental Fillings Guide: Gold, Silver, Composite Resin, Ceramic, And More

Do you need a dental filling? What type of dental filling is best for you? There are a number of things to consider such as cost and durability. Please read below as we look at dental fillings in more detail.

Cavities can be caused by a sticky coating of germs called plaque that forms on the teeth and accumulate every day. Almost 96% of adults have at least one filling and the average is around 10, while teens have at least 2 decayed or filled teeth.

Fillings are a protective measure as unfilled cavities can grow bigger, creating pain caused by infection, fracture, and destruction of the tooth pulp, that eventually affects the nerves and finally leads to tooth loss.

Dentists use different materials to fill tooth cavities but recent concerns about the safety of certain materials have raised concerns over fillings and how much of a risk they pose to our health.

Beyond the type of material, dentists have other things to consider when determining which type of material will be suitable for a particular patient.

Not surprisingly cost is usually a major consideration followed by a suitable installation technique, durability, and aesthetics. In some cases, some patients may even need to replace existing fillings and may opt for a different material to what was originally used.

The two most commonly used materials for dental fillings which have also caused the most concern are silver amalgam and composite resin.

Silver Amalgam

Silver amalgam is a strong and durable alloy composed of silver, copper, tin, and mercury that will last anything from ten to fifteen years, will not corrode and is less expensive than composite fillings.

This type of filling material has been used for more than 160 years and since the 1840s dentists have disagreed over the safety of the metal mixture.

The formulation contains elemental mercury which, according to evidence-based research has been shown to cause health problems to humans at high exposure, including brain and kidney damage.

Although silver amalgam does release trace amounts of mercury, it has largely been agreed by dental health associations that the amount released does not pose any health risk.

Composite Resins

Composite resin fillings are popular as they can be closely matched to the colour of existing teeth. Because they chemically bond to the tooth structure they provide further support. Further to this, less tooth structure needs to be removed than with amalgam fillings.

However, they are less durable and last only five years compared to ten to fifteen years for amalgams and do not perform as well under pressure when chewing, particularly with larger cavities.

Composite resin fillings can also cost up to twice the amount of amalgam fillings.

Because they are fast replacing amalgams there have been concerns about the risk of resin-based materials made from bis-DMA (bisphenol A dimethacrylate) as BPA may be released continuously when the material starts to degrade.

In some clinical studies trace elements of BPA were found in the saliva of dental patients immediately after receiving a composite resin filling, but these were found to be well below acceptable levels and after a couple of hours was undetectable.

The overall conclusion is that there are no significant adverse effects from bis-GMA composites on the health of dental patients.

Cast Gold Fillings

Gold fillings last ten to fifteen years on average and sometimes longer. They are highly durable and strong and will not corrode. Some people find the aesthetics of gold more pleasing than silver amalgam, especially where it is more visible.

The biggest disadvantage is the high cost as a gold filling can cost up to ten times more than silver amalgam and it takes at least two visits to complete the placement.

Ceramics

Ceramic fillings are made of porcelain which has a higher resistance to stains than composite materials, however, they tend to be more abrasive. They are highly durable and will last up to fifteen years and longer, however, they can cost as much as gold fillings.

Glass Ionomer

This type of filling is made from a combination of acrylic and a specific type of glass material.

The cost is comparable to composite resin fillings but it is not as durable as it will last only five years or less due to its weaker construction, susceptibility to wear and tear, and being more prone to fracture.

This type of filling is most commonly used for young children or for cavities below the gum line.

Today there are many more materials than ever to choose from and the type you decide on will largely depend on factors such as the cost of the material, your dentist’s recommendation, your aesthetic preference, and your insurance coverage.

Your dentist will be able to discuss these issues with you and help you determine which type of filling will be best for you.

Do you suspect you have a cavity? Or do you have signs of wear on your fillings? If you need to visit the dentist for any type of dental procedure, then look no further than Gardens Dental.

Gardens Dental offers a full array of dental services in Taylors Lakes and Caroline Springs area to help you and your family maintain healthy teeth. 

To learn more about our services or make an appointment, please contact us today on (03) 9449 2626 or through our website